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The Launch of the Elections in Iran’s Universities

By Ali Afshari
Former Member of the Central Council of the Office for Consolidation of Unity; Iranian Affairs Expert

Seen and Heard: May 21, 2009

“Do not vote for candidates who appeal to flattering the Western countries rather than focusing on the targets and aims of the founder of the Islamic Republic (Ayatollah Khomeini).”
– Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a speech during a visit to Kurdistan in western Iran, May 18

Civic Participation Terminology: A Guide to Frequently Used Terms and Phrases

This glossary is part of NDI’s growing library of publications that form the basis for the Institute’s efforts to create a new and precise lexicon to convey the concepts central to democracy and governance. Putting some of these principles into practice, the glossary was developed through a consultative process with NDI’s staff in Lebanon, other field offices throughout the Middle East as well as the Institute’s citizen participation team.

Ethnic Politics and the Tenth Presidential Election

By Kaveh-Cyrus Sanandaji
Middle East Center, St. Antony’s College, University of Oxford

Presidential Candidates Compete For Student Vote

By Geneive Abdo
Iran Analyst, The Century Foundation

In the final days before Iran’s June 12 presidential election, the leading contenders are using a mix of old and new campaign techniques, including social networking sites like Facebook, to win over a powerful but elusive constituency – the country’s university students.

Presidential Candidates

The candidates certified by the Guardian Council for the 2009 Iranian presidential election are:

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Malawi: Interim MESN Statement on the 2009 Presidential and Parliamentary Election

Malawi Election Monitoring Organization Issues 2nd Interim Report on May 19 Vote

The Malawi Election Support Network (MESN), a coalition of 75 civil society organizations, has issued a second interim statement on Malawi’s May 19 presidential and parliamentary elections. The goal of the organization is to help promote public confidence in the elections through its observation of the voting and counting processes.

Women Gain Political Ground in Burkina Faso

Women in Burkina Faso have ascended in political prominence across local councils, both rural and urban, and now they’re working to increase their reach on the national level.

Over the past three years, Burkina Faso has seen tremendous growth in local government as a decentralization process created councils for small regions, called communes, across the country. Women, who were largely spectators in the past, now occupy 35 percent of those new seats.